Box Social for the Arts
by bahjcb
Summary: Their school is selling off the girls for money for the arts programs, sort of, and Derek can't think of anything better. Well, that is until Casey's on the block. Dasey
1. Oh What a Beautiful Mornin'

**Okay, so I was watching the movie **_**Oklahoma! (**_**the one with Huge Jackman), anyway, the main characters fight all the time and won't admit that they like each other. Then the lady goes on a date with a farmer, her true love is a rancher, and ranchers and farmers don't get along. I'm sure that you can see the parallels—Derek/Casey and Hockey vs. Football. I did anyway and decided to base a story on the musical.**

**Disclaimer: Don't own rights to LWD or **_**Oklahoma!**_** Wish I did, that'd pay off my student loans real quick.**

* * *

_Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'_

Nora and Edwin looked up from their breakfasts in surprise as Derek came into the kitchen with a spring in his step and whistling a peppy tune. They exchanged a look as he got his own cereal without once trying to get anyone to wait on him.

"You're up early for a Saturday," Nora ventured to say to the potential pod person.

"I have to get my car detailed for tonight," Derek replied with a smirk. "The school's practically auctioning off the girls. This is a great day."

"That explains the good mood," Edwin muttered.

Lizzie then wandered into the kitchen and did a double take at seeing Derek. "It's Saturday," she informed him.

"I know," Derek laughed.

"It's before ten! We usually have to drag you out of bed around noon."

"He's getting ready for the girl auction tonight," Edwin informed her.

Casey, walking in to hear her youngest step-brother's comment, replied, "It's not a girl auction. It's a box social to raise money for the art programs at school."

"Whatever," Derek replied. "Either way, we get to bid on girls. Don't be too upset tonight Spacey when yours only makes a dollar or two, if you're lucky."

"Derek…" Nora started to reprimand, but was quickly shouted down by Casey's reaction.

"I'll have you know it's a blind auction," she snapped angrily at her constant nemesis. "No one knows who's basket is who's."

"Everyone will know your basket a kilometer away. The tofu smell will warn them away," Derek smirked.

To angry to say anything, Casey just growled and stomped away to get her own breakfast.

Happy to have won their little battle, Derek chucked his spoon and bowl into the sink and headed for the front door. "I better hurry. I'll need my car looking nice for my _date_ tonight."

"You are such a pig," Casey shouted after him. Once the door closed on him and his laughter, Casey muttered, "Not like anything could make _The Prince_ look good. Junk heap car."

Lizzie and Edwin exchanged a look. It was obvious that this was going to make it into their research binder.

* * *

_The Prince When Cleaned to a Shine_

_or_

_The Surrey With the Fringe On Top_

"All right," Derek announced as he came rushing into the living room several hours later. "Come see the Prince. It looks good."

At Casey's look of disbelief, he smirked, "Don't believe me, Princess?"

Tossing her book down, Casey popped up off the couch like it bit her. "There's no way a wash and a vacuum could ever make that lemon look good."

As she stormed out the door, Derek smirked at the rest of his family. None of them wanted to miss the excitement and hurriedly filed out the door after him.

"Wow!" Edwin exclaimed at seeing Derek's car. "It's shining."

"I don't think the Prince has ever looked this good," George added in awe.

"Did they shampoo the rugs?" Nora asked as she peered into the car itself.

"Full treatment," Derek replied.

"The Prince is beautiful, Smerek," Marti excitedly told her favorite brother.

After giving his little sister a quick smile, Derek turned to Casey. "What do you think?"

"It's tolerable," she replied with practiced unconcern. "Good enough for one of your blonde bimbos."

"Tsk, tsk, Space Case. That almost sounds like you're jealous. Don't worry, I'll take your royal highness there. I'm sure that whatever sucker buys your hamper will be willing to get rid of you—I mean take you home," he added with a smirk.

George and Nora seemed to sigh on cue together. The other McDonald-Venturi's instinctively took a step back to make sure they were out of range when the fighting really started.

"Der-ek! You…you…"

"Me, me, what?"

Luckily for the family, Emily who had stepped out on her front porch finally caught Casey's attention.

"I'll be right there, Emily," Casey called. Walking next door she made sure to give Derek such a cold stare that it was amazing that he didn't instantly freeze solid.

Derek, being Derek however, just laughed as she walked away.


	2. I Cain't Say No

_I Cain't Say No_

"Emily, what's going on?" Casey asked.

Emily fidgeted and bit her lip before blurting out, "Sheldon's coming back. He'll be here tonight for the box social."

"That's great!" Seeing her friend's look, Casey amended, "Isn't it?"

"Well," she vacillated. "I mean, I am happy he's coming back. I have missed him."

"Then what's wrong?"

"Well, Trevor has been paying attention to me lately."

Screwing her face up in confusion, Casey asked, "But, aren't you still dating Sheldon?"

"Sort of." Brightening, Emily added, "We've been on a break since he moved."

"So…who are you going to pick?"

"I don't know," Emily sighed. "The problem is that they both want a serious exclusive relationship."

"Trevor said that?" Casey asked, surprised. She just didn't see Trevor saying romantic speeches, of course, she still wasn't sure how her friend and Sheldon got together so maybe Trevor was a secret romantic.

"Not out right, like that," Emily replied. "We went to see a hard rock musical version of _Romeo & Juliet_…"

"You saw a what?"

"It only lasted for a week."

"Oh," Casey replied, still confused that there ever _was_ a hard rock musical version of _Romeo & Juliet_. "So, what happened?"

"Well, the play was awful, but _so_ romantic," Emily sighed happily. "We saw it on its last night so there was no way we could ever see it with anybody else."

"O-kay…"

"Trevor said the play would always be _our_ play."

"Was he being sarcastic, because…"

"Casey," Emily reprimanded. "It was a romantic play, Trevor said it was our play, obviously Trevor wants to be with me."

Casey just blinked. That was the craziest thing she had ever heard, but she really couldn't think of how to respond to that.

Evidently her silence was enough because Emily frowned and snapped, "Well, not all of us are used to boys just throwing themselves at us."

Pulling herself up entirely, Casey retorted, "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Come on! Sam, Max, Noel, Tinker…"

"Tinker does not count! Neither does Noel. I've never dated him."

"Not from lack of effort on his part."

"Whatever," Casey replied, batting away her friend's remark. "Noel and I are friends."

Shaking her head, Emily said, "You just don't get it, do you? You have boys fighting to get your attention but you're too wrapped up in Derek-land to notice."

"Derek-land!" Casey shrieked.

Raising her voice to a higher pitch, Emily started her impersonation. "Der-ek! Derek got into my things! Derek played a prank on me! Derek's dated half the girls in London! Derek is a jerk! Derek doesn't use good hygiene habits! Derek drank the last of the milk! Derek…."

"Stop that! I am not always complaining about Derek!"

"No, just seventy-five percent of the time."

Both girls turned at the sound of the new voice to find Kendra standing in the doorway. "Your Mom let me in. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," Emily replied, indicating for Kendra to take a seat.

Casey, not willing to let their comments go just yet, protested, "I rarely think about Derek."

Kendra and Emily exchanged a glance before Kendra replied, "Don't worry. Derek spent half the time we were together complaining about you, too. You two are _so_ meant to be."

Casey was dumbstruck by that comment and sat there opening and shutting her mouth as if trying to get the words to come out.

"So," Kendra said, ignoring Casey's breakdown. "Who are you hoping will buy your basket tonight?"

"I can't decided," Emily sighed. "Sheldon's coming back but Trevor's being giving me all this attention lately. I can't just toss him aside. Besides, he's a really good kisser."

"Better than Sheldon?"

Emily thought about this for a second be for smiling. "I think I'd have to do a comparison to decided."

Casey, finally in control of her voice, interrupted their giggling. "Why did you say we were…meant to be?"

Kendra turned to Casey and gave her a look that clearly questioned her intelligence. "Casey, no one gets you or Derek worked up quite like each other. Lots of passion," she added with a grin.

Turning back to Emily, she said, "I always thought Trevor was kind of cute in a dark, brooding sort of way."

"Yes," Emily sighed in agreement. "But, Sheldon's such a gentleman. And he's quirky, so you never know what's going to happen next."

"Passion!" Casey finally stuttered out.

Kendra rolled her eyes. "Casey," Kendra slowly said, almost as if she was speaking to a delinquent toddler. "You and Derek aren't very good at hiding your feelings. Anytime either of you go on a date…let's just say that you both make it extremely uncomfortable to be either of your dates. And, before you ask, I talked to Sam. He completely agrees with me."

"Come on, Case," Emily added. "Didn't you think the 'Male Code' was a bit suspicious? Or how about the time you dressed up in a blonde wig and stalked us on our date?"

"She did that?" Kendra asked with a grin.

Nodding, Emily replied, "They are both pathetic when it comes to each other."

"You….you two are…are just messed up!" Casey declared. "I would never…I mean really…"

Smirking, Kendra replied, "The worst thing you can do for love is deny it; so when you find that special someone, don't let anyone or anything to get in your way." At Emily and Casey's surprised looks, Kendra laughed. "It was some anonymous quote I heard in English. But, it perfectly explains your situation, Casey."

Casey huffed and crossed her arms angrily over her chest. Shaking her head, she dismissed her friends and their opinions completely. "Whatever. Obviously you two have been smoking something. I'm going to go and let you two spread your idiotic theories without me."

"Case," Emily implored.

"I have to finish my basket anyway," Casey answered.

"You haven't started on it yet?" Kendra asked in surprise.

"I have it all planed out…"

"Oh," Emily and Kendra replied together, no longer amazed at Casey lack of preparation.

Seeing that they were no longer interested in her, Casey shook her head and headed out the door. As she headed down the Davis's stairs, she could hear Kendra say, "So, can I have whichever one you don't pick? Sheldon sounds worth getting to know."

"Who said I wasn't going to pick Sheldon!"

"So then Trevor?"

* * *

_People Will Say We're in Love_

Derek came clomping into the kitchen looking for a snack but stopped short when he saw Casey packing her lunch for the auction. Smirking, he sauntered over to her and hopped up on the counter next to her food.

"Der-ek! Don't sit on the counter!"

Ignoring her outburst, Derek swiped her apple and took a large bite. Around a mouthful, he said, "So, Spacey, just starting?"

Glaring at him and grabbing another apple, Casey snapped, "Any sooner and it won't be fresh."

"Not like it matters."

Concentrating on her packing, Casey barely spared the time to roll her eyes at him.

"I'm leaving at 6:45. If you're not in the car, you're getting left behind."

Turning to look Derek in the eyes, she snapped, "I don't need your ride. Max called and offered to take me."

"But you two broke up."

"Well, maybe we want to try again."

It was now Derek's turn to role his eyes. "Why would you want to _try again_ with Football Ken? He has all the personality of Styrofoam and he turns you into a Stepford Girlfriend."

"Wow, I'm impressed you even heard of the _Stepford_ _Wives_."

"Nichole Kidman's a hot babe."

"Huh! I should have known."

Taking another bite of his stolen apple, Derek asked, "You're not really going with Styrofoam Max are you? Lizzie tells me Styrofoam is very bad for the environment. It takes forever to decompose," he added with a self-satisfied smirk.

Slamming her knife down on the counter, Casey snapped, "I'm going to ignore your vague insults…"

"They weren't vague," Derek mumbled to himself.

Going as if she hadn't heard him, she said, "…And just say that it's a good thing we aren't going together because if we arrived together it would only fuel the rumors."

"Rumors? What rumors?" Seeing her glare, Derek smirked. "Oh, you mean the rumors that you have a crush on me."

"Ha!" Casey retorted. "More like the rumors that you have a crush on me."

Derek rolled his eyes and snorted, showing his disbelief in _that_ statement.

"Sure, Space Case. That's the problem."

"Well, just to make sure, why don't we have some ground rules."

"Here we go."

"Don't complement me too much."

"Yeah, 'cause that's been a problem before."

"And no backhanded complements either, Derek," Casey replied with a smirk.

"Anymore 'rules' or are we done."

"Don't buy me flowers or do nice things for me."

Ignoring the second part, Derek said, "That's going to be a problem as I practically can't go a day without getting you flowers. That is why our home looks like a freakin' greenhouse."

"Don't laugh at my jokes too much," Casey continued with her list, ignoring his sarcasm.

"Case, really, _who_ laughs at your jokes? You aren't that funny. Funny looking, but funny…"

"Ha, ha, Der. Furthermore, if you could stop gazing at me with that goofy little grin of yours…"

"I told you, you're funny looking. I can't help it if I stare in horror."

"Also, could you stop collecting things of mine?"

"Excuse me!" Derek shouted, jumping off the counter.

"I would like my silver hair clips and my favorite pillow case back."

Stepping closer, Derek growled, "I can't help it if you don't know where you put stuff. Just because you can't find junk doesn't mean that I'm _hording_ it like some love sick school girl."

"Oh, Derek…" Casey started to tease.

"You know," Derek interrupted. "Some people might think you're the problem."

"Oh?" she drawled.

Picking up the sandwich she had just finished making, Derek smirked, "Did you happen to notice that you made my favorite lunch for your picnic hamper?"

"Ha, that's…this isn't your favorite lunch! There's fruit and vegetables! You know those things you avoid because they're _healthy_!"

"Oh look, my favorite chips and my favorite chocolate chip cookies," he answered, pulling the items out of her basket.

Snatching the food out of his hands, Casey carefully put them back into the picnic basket. "It's not surprising that your favorite foods would be in _our_ home."

"Okay, so what about my clothes?"

"Other than the fact that they smell?"

"Funny, Princess. I would laugh, but I'm trying to follow the rules."

Pushing past him, Casey went back to wrapping up the sub sandwich she had made.

"No come back, huh?" Leaning in closer so that his breath whispered across her cheek, Derek said, "When I stole all of your clothes, you didn't borrow anything from Nora. No, you wore my clothes. People might say that's a sign."

Flipping around, Casey shoved Derek back, putting some space between them. Derek's eyes, however, flashed as he could see how flustered she was.

"You're room is next door. I didn't want to wander around the house naked."

"Ah. Of course." Leaning against the island, Derek crossed his arms across his chest and smirked. "It looks like you need a few _ground rules_, too, Princess Casey."

"Like what?"

"Well, how about you stop praising my charms so much?"

It really was a coincidence that at that moment Derek let loose a loud belch, but Casey took it as a sign and turned her back on him. Her efforts to end the discussion didn't seem to work, however, as Derek kept talking.

"It would also help if you didn't look so proud of yourself every time you're near me."

Flipping back around, Casey retorted, "If I look proud of myself it's for winning our verbal battles. Which, as we both know, isn't that hard."

Leaning forward, Derek grabbed a hold of Casey's shoulders. "Don't stand so close to me, Case. And, you might want to stop those little touches you give me every time we talk."

Shrugging his hands off her, Casey snapped, "You're insane."

Dropping to his knees in an over dramatic moment, Derek grabbed her hands in his and held them to his chest. "Don't hold your hand in mine…even though we're a perfect fit."

"Ugh," she shouted as she yanked her hands away. Shoving him back onto the floor, Casey added, "Go Away!"

Laughing, Derek leaned back against the counter and watched her as she fussed with her lunch for a moment.

"Come on, Case," he cajoled. "We both know you're done with that Ken doll. I'll drive you. We're both here. It's a waste of gas for Max to drive all the way over here."

"It's not that far. Besides, when did you become so environmentally friendly?"

"I can't have Lizzie preaching at me constantly without some of it rubbing off."

"To bad that hasn't seem to work with your manners," Casey retorted.

"That's just because it's so fun to get you riled up."

Turning to look down at him, she said, "So, you admit you can be nice if you want to?"

"Haven't had a girl that complained yet."

Rolling her eyes, Casey turned back to the counter.

"So, Case, you're going to call and cancel with Max. Right?"

Casey fiddled with the packages of lunch meat she was sealing and declined to answer.

"Case?"

"Derek…I can't. Alright. I just can't."

"Right," Derek sarcastically replied as he pushed himself up. "Who wouldn't want to spend time with a jerk that has all the personality of Styrofoam?"

"Derek," Casey said, flipping back around to face him. "It's not…"

Interrupting and ignoring her, Derek added, "You know what, I think I'll go down to the football field. Get to know Max better. Maybe I find out why girls voluntarily spend time with him."

"Derek," Casey called after his retreating figure.

The only answer she received was the sound of the front door slamming shut. Turning back to her picnic basket, Casey bit her lip and tried not to think about why this stupid fight with Derek seemed to upset her so much.


	3. Pore Max is Daid

_Pore 'Max' is Daid_

To say Max was startled to come out of the locker-room shower to find Derek Venturi lazily exploring _his_ locker would be an understatement. Freezing in shock, Max stood there silently until he saw Derek start to go through his wallet. Becoming animated once again, Max hurried forward and ripped his wallet out of Derek's hands.

"Venturi, how did you…what are you…Keep out of my stuff!"

Laughing sardonically, Derek moved to lean against an adjoining locker. Smirking he held up a closed, combination lock. "Here's a little hint. If you want to keep people out of your locker, lock it."

Snatching the lock out of Derek's hand, Max tossed it into his locker where it fell into one of his tennis shoes.

"You know, that's probably what happened last time."

Putting his hands on his hips, in some mistaken belief that he looked threatening, Max snarled, "What are you doing here?"

"Whoa! Whoa!" Derek shouted as he quickly looked up at the locker-room ceiling. "Be careful, dude. No one wants to see what you're sharing."

Looking down, Max found that his towel was indeed sliding open and he quickly pulled it shut. Grabbing his pants, Max walked to the other side of the open locker door, hoping to use that some sort of wall while he pulled his pants on up under his towel. Once the lower half of his body was safely clothed, Max turned around to find Derek flipping through a magazine.

"Where did you get that?" Max asked nervously as he pulled on a shirt.

Looking up, Derek smirked. "This?" he asked, holding up the publication. "Oh, I found it in the back of your locker." Tossing it back into the filthy metal box, Derek added, "You know what Casey would say if she saw that? Girly magazines are degrading to woman. Better make sure she never finds that."

"Damn it, Venturi, what do you want?"

Smirking, Derek replied, "Hey, you're lucky I came by. Look at all the water around here."

"What, were you going to catch me if I slipped?"

"No," Derek drawled. "But, that hairdryer, which how girly is it that you guys use a hairdryer. Anyway, it's plugged in and almost fell off the counter. You would have been electrocuted…unless, someone was trying to kill you. You did kinda suck at the last game."

"Shut-up," Max snarled as he sat down and started putting on his shoes.

Raising his eyebrows, Derek added, "I find it kind of suspicious that you're the only one here. Not as popular as people would think, huh?"

"Go to hell!" Max snapped as he slammed his locker shut.

"You know, you never really no how well you're liked until you're dead."

Though Derek sounded as if he was just making a philosophical observation, everyone knew he had never been philosophical in his whole life. Max, despite being kind of dense, knew this and instantly stopped in his tracks. Turning, he gave Derek a look full of wariness.

Derek acted as if he didn't see Max's expression at all and just kept talking.

"I can just see it now. People would come out of the woodwork, wanting to be at your funeral. They'd have to hold it in the gym. You'd be laid out in some nice suit and coffin. The entire cheerleader squad would be sobbing and fainting."

"You just said it was suspicious that I'm all alone in the locker-room," Max said, surprised that he was replying.

"Ah, but you know the old saying, 'You don't know what you've got till it's gone.' It'd be like that. Everyone will feel so bad that they didn't treat you better."

"People treat me fine."

Leaning back against a locker, looking as relaxed as could be, Derek taunted, "So, you haven't hear the gossip."

"What gossip?" Max asked with a frown.

"That you're compensating for something. I mean we both know that there's nothing wrong with the fact that you always wear your letterman's jacket. Just because you like to constantly remind people of the fact that you have some prowess on the football field doesn't mean anything."

"Huh?"

"I can just see your funeral," Derek continued. "The preacher would ask if anyone wanted to say anything and people would line up. The funeral would last for hours as they talked about your heart of gold, how you were just too young to go…"

"Shut-up, Venturi! Shut-up. This is creepy."

Shrugging, Derek pushed away from the locker he was leaning against. "I don't see why."

"You never did tell me why you stopped by," Max said, trying to change the subject.

"I just came by to chat. See how you were doing. Since you're taking Casey out tonight, I just wanted to make sure you were doing well." Stepping closer, Derek added in a low voice, "I hate it when she cries. It's hell around the house when she's upset. And when Casey's upset, the rest of us are upset. I think you see where I'm going with this."

Walking past Max, and making sure to bump him out of his way, Derek added, "See you tonight."

Max may have been hit one too many times on the football field, but he was fairly certain he knew why Derek Venturi stopped by. Narrowing his eyes as he watched Derek leave, Max decided that he wasn't going to let Venturi win this time.

* * *

_Out of Your Dreams_

"Casey, where are you doing?" Marti asked as she followed her oldest stepsister up the stairs.

Turning, Casey smiled at the little girl. "I was going to take a nap before I have to get ready for tonight's box social auction."

"Oh. Are you tired?"

"A little bit. I was up early."

Marti nodded and that seemed to be that, but as Casey was about to step into her room, Marti said, "Are you going to dream about Smerek?"

"What?!" Casey half shrieked as she flipped around.

"You talk in your sleep," Marti informed the older girl. "I heard you once. You said, 'Oh, Der-ek.'"

"We were probably fighting," Casey replied, hoping that she wasn't blushing as badly as she felt she was.

"No," Marti assured her. "It wasn't your mad way to say Smerek's name."

"I have different ways I say Derek's name?"

"Yep!"

Very serious, Casey crouched down to Marti's eye level, before asking, "Marti, does Derek know I say his name different ways?"

"He should. He smirks at you different ways."

"He does?"

"Yeah."

"What—what are the different smirks?"

Marti thought about this for a second before replying. "There's the smirk he gives you when he's happy to see you. And the one when he thinks you look pretty. Then there's the one he gives you when he thinks you're being cute. He gives you that one a lot when you're yelling at him."

"Are you sure…"

"I asked Smerek, Casey," Marti assured her. "Smerek told me that he thinks you're cute when you're all riled up."

Grinning broadly, Casey asked, "He does?"

"Yep."

Pulling the young girl into a hug, Casey said, "Don't tell Derek, but I think he's cute when he's all riled up, too."

As she watched her older stepsister skip off into her room, Marti just shook her head. Casey should be telling Smerek that and not her, she decided before going off to play hide-and-go-seek with Daphne.

* * *

_Dreams Ballet_

Throwing herself onto her comfy bed, Casey decided that maybe it wouldn't be so bad to admit her feelings for Derek if he felt the same way. If Marti was to be believed then there was a pretty good chance he did.

Cuddling into her pillow, Casey smiled and felt sleep take over.

_--_

Opening her eyes, Casey looked around and saw that she was in some empty but beautiful field. Hearing music that seemed to be playing on the breeze only for her, Casey decided to indulge herself and dance to it. Just as she was finishing her dance, she suddenly felt a presence behind her. A presence she knew very well.

Smiling, Casey turned to find Derek giving her _that_ smirk. The smirk that she'd secretly come to think of as hers.

"Care to dance?" he asked, stretching out his hand.

"Derek Venturi dances?" she coyly replied.

"He would if it was with you," he answered, taking her into his arms.

The music seemed to change to something slower that allowed constant touching between their bodies as they danced. Sighing happily, Casey snuggled into his chest.

Feeling him place a kiss on the top of her head, Casey said, "I think I'm falling for you, Derek Venturi."

"Derek! Why did you call me Derek?" an equally familiar voice barked.

Stepping back and looking up, Casey's eyes widened as she realized she was looking at Max.

Pulling out of his arms, she exclaimed, "Max! But, I was dancing with Derek."

"Come on Casey," he answered, pulling her back against him. "What do you want with Venturi? He's your brother."

"Step! Stepbrother! We're not related," she argued, trying to pull out of his iron like grip. "Let me go!"

"Not yet, Casey. We're dancing."

"I don't want to dance with you."

"I didn't ask you to," Max replied with a cold grin.

"I think the lady asked you to let go."

"Derek," Casey cried in relief.

Distracted by the new comer, Max loosened his hold enough so that Casey was able to escape. Quickly, she slipped behind Derek, knowing he would take care of her.

"This isn't any of your business, Venturi," Max replied.

"Oh, I think it is," Derek answered. Without taking his eyes off the football player, he said, "Case, keep back. I don't want you to get hurt."

With a glare, Max launched himself at Derek. It was soon apparent, however, who had the advantage. It wasn't long before Derek stood up, leaving an unconscious and bleeding Max on the ground.

Glad to see he was unhurt, Casey launched herself into his arms. This time, the gentle kiss she received was definitely from Derek.

"I'm falling for you, Derek," she said with a happy sigh.

Hugging her closer to him, Derek replied, "Of course you are. You didn't have a chance."

"Cocky jerk," she teased.

Derek smiled, really smiled, and Casey decided that she was no longer falling. It was a done deal.

Leaning up to kiss him again, Derek suddenly stiffened and his eyes glazed over. As he started to slip to the ground, Casey tried to hold him up, but his dead weight was just too much for her. Cradling him against her, she tried to figure out what had happened.

Before she could find an answer, Casey felt herself being pulled away from Derek. Fighting back, she screamed, "No! No! He needs me!"

"Sorry," a cold voice replied, "but you're Max's girl. No lousy hockey player is going to take you away from him."

Upon turning her head to see who was holding her so tightly, Casey let loose a small growl. "Ryan. Let me go!"

"Sorry. Like I said, you're Max's property."

"I am no one's property! Put me down," she yelled, banging on his gorilla-like chest as he carried her away from Derek. "What did you do to Derek?"

"Let's just say he won't be able to steal you away ever again."

"No," Casey screamed as she looked over Ryan's shoulder and saw the ever widening pool of blood around Derek's body.

_--_

"Casey," Lizzie said as she shook her sister awake.

Eyes popping open, Casey breathed a sigh of relief as she realized it had all been a horrible dream.

"You need to get ready," Lizzie told her. "Max will be here in an hour."

"Oh. Thanks, Liz," Casey replied distractedly. After her dream, she wasn't so sure she wanted to be alone with Max and yet at the same time, she didn't dare cancel on him.


	4. Football vs Hockey

_The Football Jocks & The Hockey Players_

Surprisingly, it all started with the Math Club. For fun, they started keeping statistics on some of the more popular people at school. So really, it actually started when one of the female members wanted to know if she'd _ever_ have a chance with _the _Derek Venturi. To make it more interesting for the rest of them, they added other popular people to the stats.

Sophomore year, however, brought with it the addition of Derek's stepsister. Then the Math Club really started to have fun. Logging Derek and Casey's actions and reactions to each other took up most of the time they usually spent on other pursuits.

Deciding to put their information to some sort of practical use, the Math Club started a betting ring. First, they just spoke to their friends in other clubs. Those friends, however, told other friends and soon half the school was involved.

After minor bets on games, who was taking whom to whatever dance was coming up, and the like, enough people were involved that the Box Social Fundraiser was the biggest gambling event of the year. There was lots of money riding on who would raise more money, the football team or the hockey team. Then there were some minor bets on basket bidding. At least until it came to Casey McDonald's basket.

Everyone knew the rumors and it wasn't exactly a secret that Max and Derek didn't like each other. When it became known that Max was going to try to date Casey once again, well, the betting just took off.

The Math Club decided it would be fun to mess with the numbers, make the bet more interesting. Though it was supposed to be a blind action, somehow letting Derek and Max know which basket was hers would up the excitement. No one was sure how to go about it until a cheerleader, who happened to hear them talking about it in passing, suggested that they just announce it to everyone.

Deciding that simpler could get the job done as well or even better than complicated in this task, the Math Club ran a few numbers and created a sure fire formula. Everything was in place for the big night.

* * *

Heidi, secretary of the Math Club, sneaked over to Frank, the president. Frank didn't notice at first, as he was too busy logging last minutes bets. Heidi, however, was not deterred.

"Frank," she hissed. "Update."

"What?" he asked, not looking up from his laptop.

"Derek Venturi just arrived—_without_ Casey."

This time Frank looked up. "What?"

"Derek was alone and he looked ticked off."

"But…they live together. You don't think she decided not to come, do you?"

"I don't know," Heidi sighed, her frustration clearly showing. "I followed him for a little bit. Sam asked him where Casey was and Derek snapped, 'How the hell should I know?' before growling. He _growled_, Frank."

Frank rubbed the bridge of his nose trying to push the tension headache he was getting away. If Casey didn't even bring a basket, well that was bound to make things tense for the Math Club/Betting Syndicate.

"Aw, crap," Heidi sighed. "Danny's signaling. They're about to start. Casey's still not here!" she added unnecessarily.

Frank stopped rubbing his forehead and nodded decisively. "Casey's not going to miss this. She won't," Frank added to Heidi's look of disbelief. "It's a fundraiser for the Arts Program. She'll be all over that."

"So…you think they got in a fight and Derek just…left her?"

"Knowing those two, it's totally possible. And, Casey being late is perfect. She'll be too frazzled to even question Maya when she tries to take Casey's basket."

Sighing happily, Heidi nodded. "I'll go tell Maya. She'll be freaking think that she missed Casey somehow."

"Good. And, while you're at it, make sure Tommy's recording the results."

"Will do, boss," she replied before hurrying off to do as she was bid.

* * *

"Sheldon," Emily half shrieked, half whispered. "You're not actually going to let Devon buy my basket are you?"

Looking completely unconcerned, Sheldon replied, "I thought we were on a break. He's on the basketball team. I thought you'd like getting to know him."

"Sheldon!"

Blinking at her in surprise, Sheldon asked, "But, wasn't that why you dated, Trevor?"

Emily snorted in disbelief before starting to root through her purse angrily.

"What are you doing?" he asked her curiously.

"I'm going to buy my basket. If you won't do it then I will. I don't want to be with anyone but you, stupid." Looking back up at him she added, "I was flattered, but it didn't mean anything."

"How do I know you won't change your mind the next time I'm not right in front of you for awhile?"

Grinning, Emily snapped back, "Who said I was letting you out of my sight?"

Smiling broadly, Sheldon brought his hand out of his wallet and yelled, "Five dollars."

* * *

Clutching her basket to her like a security blanket, Casey rushed towards the school, Max following her at a slow lope.

Frustrated, Casey ripped the door open and snapped, "Max, we're late. They might not take my basket."

Giving her his rather inane grin, Max replied, "But, I'm your date, aren't I? You don't need anyone else to bid on your basket."

"This is a fundraiser, Max."

"I'll donate the money I would have spent," he answered, unsure of where her anger was coming from.

Casey didn't have a reply to that. Luckily, for her, Maya Corbett came rushing over to them and interrupted the moment.

"Casey, they've already started," Maya informed her.

"Oh," Casey moaned. "But, I have a basket."

"Don't worry," Maya quickly assured her. "I've been helping with the event. No one will notice if I slip the basket in with the others."

"Thank you so much," Casey said, relieved, before shoving the basket at Maya and hurrying off towards the crowd watching the auction.

Turning towards Max with a grin and a shrug, Maya said, "I guess she didn't want to miss all the action."

Max, in turn, just stared blankly after Casey's retreating form.

* * *

"Sheldon," Emily squealed happily as she threw her arms around her boyfriend's neck when he came back to her with her lunch basket. "You bought me."

Pressing a quick kiss to her lips, he said, "Yep. That means you're mine."

An awkward clearing of the throat, however, caused them to pull back.

"Trevor," Emily sighed as she saw the new arrival.

"Congrats you two," he said with a grin.

"Thank you," Sheldon automatically replied, curious as to what Trevor was up to.

Grabbing one of Emily's hands off Sheldon's shoulder, Trevor pulled her towards him with a jerk. "You don't mind, do you?" Trevor asked Sheldon. Without waiting for an answer, he went on. "Before you're completely off-limits, I think I should tell you good-bye."

"Good-bye," Emily stuttered as Trevor moved his body closer to hers.

"That's right. Just a real quick punk rocker good-bye."

With that, Trevor grabbed a hold off Emily's other hand, locking them in his gentle, yet iron grip. With Sheldon watching on in shock, Trevor raised Emily's right hand and kissed the back, then the palm, then her wrist, mid-forearm, and then the crook of her elbow. Bringing up her left hand, Trevor repeated the procedure before kissing each of her cheeks, her nose, and then, _finally_, her lips.

As Trevor walked off with a smirk, Emily collapsed against Sheldon.

Once she was in control of herself once more, Emily looked up at her boyfriend with a shy smile. "You know what I said about not letting you out of my sight…"

"Uh huh," Sheldon coolly replied.

"If I don't let you out of my sight then we can never have a good-bye like that."

Grinning in relief, Sheldon replied, "That's only because you've never experienced a Schlepper Hello."

Intrigued, Emily turned around to face him with a large grin. "A Schlepper Hello."

Sheldon didn't answer her, but instead, twirled her out then back against him before dipping Emily low and kissing her until her toes curled.

As he set her back upright, Emily breathless said, "Hel-lo!"

Sheldon then gave her a smirk that would rival The Great Derek Venturi's, before saying 'Hello' to Emily once again.

* * *

Casey felt much safer being in the large crowd of students instead of alone with Max. Looking around, she caught Derek's eye but he quickly looked away. Sighing, Casey turned her attention back to the auction.

Like everyone else, she laughed at the expression on Amy's face when Tinker bought her basket and sighed happily when a couple she didn't know, but obviously liked each, blushed happily as the Student Body President yelled, "Sold." Casey was starting to relax and enjoy herself until the last basket was brought up. In all the commotion she'd forgotten she'd brought a basket as well.

"Well," the auctioneer said with a toothy grin. "Last basket of the night. Get ready guys to be surprised by our last mystery contestant."

"That's Casey McDonald's basket," Maya Corbett absently answered. Feeling everyone's eyes on her, she blushed and sheepishly added, "Did I say that out loud?"

Rolling his eyes, the Student Body President turned back to the crowd. "Well, I've heard that Casey's a great cook so this ought to be good. We'll open the bidding at a dollar."

"One dollar," Max replied.

"1.50," a random guy, who hadn't bought a basket yet, said.

"Two dollars," Max instantly countered.

Seeing the determined look, the other contestant backed off and gave up bidding.

Ralph, seeing this, turned to Sam. "Dude, where's Derek?"

"I don't know," Sam replied as he looked around the room frantically.

"It looks like Casey doesn't want Max to buy her basket."

Sam turned to look at Casey and came to an instant decision. Hoping his girlfriend would forgive him, Sam shouted, "Three dollars."

"Four," Max countered.

"4.25," Sam replied as he gestured for Ralph to give him his spare change.

"4.50."

"Sorry, dude, I don't have anything but ten cents," Ralph said.

Quickly counting through the change he now had, Sam looked up at Ralph with a panicked look upon his face. "Where the _hell_ is, Derek? I can't take his mooning much longer."

"Yeah," Ralph agreed as he tried to get the guy next to him to cough up some cash.

Just as the auctioneer was about to shout sold, Derek pushed his way through the crowd and to the edge of the stage.

Dropping his hockey bag on the floor next to him, he drawled, "Sorry, I'm late. I had to run back to the Prince to grab the change out of the ashtray. What are we at?"

"4.50," the auctioneer automatically replied.

"4.75," Derek said.

"Five dollars," Max growled. "And, I'm sure your ashtray didn't have enough money for you to win this thing."

"We'll see," Derek countered with a smirk before saying, "5.25."

Everyone looked back and forth between Derek and Max as they kept trying to outbid each other. That was until Max said, "11.35."

Derek counted through his cash once again and it was obvious that he had come up short. Casey watched in disbelief as Derek reached down and grabbed his hockey bag.

Ripping it open, Derek announced, "Who would like to own a part of the great hockey history of Sir John Sparrow Thompson High School." Holding up his practice jersey, he went on, "This is the practice jersey I wore to every practice last year when we kicked butt. And," he added, pulling out a battered, black piece of plastic. "I'm willing to throw in the game winning puck."

"I've got ten dollars," Jason, the football team's second string quarterback, offered.

"Cash?"

"Here," he said, holding up a ten dollar bill.

"Hey," Max yelled.

"Sorry, dude," Jason shrugged. "Venturi's right. It's a great piece of Bulldog history."

Smirking, Derek said, "21.25."

"21.35," Max replied.

Casey sighed as Derek ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"Fine," Derek snapped. Pulling his keys out of his pocket he quickly yanked off his car key. Holding it in the air, he said, "I just had him detailed and got a tune-up today. I'm expecting more than what I got for my hockey stuff though. This car is a classic."

"Der-ek," Casey exclaimed, surprised at what he was doing. "You can't sale The Prince."

Ignoring her, he asked, "Anyone? Come on, The Prince runs like a dream."

Pushing through the crowd, Trevor walked up and held out a twenty. "I could use a car." With a shrug he added, "The Prince sounds like my price range."

Nodding, Derek snatched the title out of his pocket. "Pleasure doing business with you," he said, taking the money as he handed over the car title and the key.

"Let's see," Derek smirked. "I believe I am now at 41.25."

Even though he didn't say it, everything in his manner screamed, "Top that!" Max, scowling, pulled open his wallet and counted all the money he had. Looking up, he grinned wickedly. Seeing the look, Derek swallowed nervously.

"What else do you got, Venturi? Nothing," Max replied, answering himself. "You've sold everything you've got, except for your leather jacket. We all know you won't sell that. You _can't _sell that. You'd stop being The Derek Venturi if you did."

Smiling smugly, Max walked over to the stage and slammed all his money down.

"42. 35. I win."

Derek clenched his jaw and for a minute everyone thought he was going to deck Max. Instead of that, however, he ripped his jacket off and held it up.

"What can I get for a quality leather jacket? I'm willing to take five dollars."

Casey, seeing him auction off his beloved leather jacket, felt her eyes widen and her jaw drop involuntarily. Shaking herself, she stormed over to Derek and snatched the jacket out of his hands.

"Excuse me?" he asked her with raised eyebrows.

Shoving a twenty at him, she fiercely replied, "You're not getting this back."

Smiling, genuinely smiling, Derek took the twenty and while looking directly into Casey's brilliantly blue eyes, said, "61.25."

"Sold," the surprised auctioneer quickly shouted, ending the auction for good.


	5. Reprised

_People Will Say We're In Love (Reprised)_

In the thirty seconds it took Derek to hand over his money and grab her basket, Casey had disappeared. Worried, Derek tried to find her, but he got continually stopped by one person after another. All of them wanted to question him about the auction. Did he do it for Casey or just so he could beat Max?

Derek was ready to tell them all to go to hell when he saw Emily signaling him that she and Sheldon would look for Casey. Luckily for the crowd surrounding him, that was just enough so that Derek didn't go ballistic and was even semi-polite as he fought his way through the press of people.

While Derek was freaking out, Casey was hiding in the corner stall of a nearby bathroom. With her head between her knees, Casey took deep breaths hoping that it would calm her nerves and help her forget about the fact that she practically announced to the whole school that she had a crush on her step-brother. Crossing her arms tighter around herself, Casey felt the cool leather of what _used_ _to be_ the Derek Venturi's jacket.

Smiling, she slowly sat up and rubbed the buttery leather. Pulling the collar closer, Casey took a deep breath, smelling the scent that lingered. Taking another sniff, Casey decided that the smell was pure Derek. It was her new favorite fragrance.

Looking at the leather jacket she wore, Casey finally realized something. Yes, she had announced her feelings, but so had Derek. He sold his most important things for _her_. Her grin widening, Casey realized that Marti was right.

Feeling braver, Casey stood up and marched out of the stall. After checking over her hair and make-up in the mirror, Casey squared her shoulders and left the bathroom intent on finding Derek. Unfortunately, her search was immediately interrupted.

"Casey, there you are," Max growled. "I've been looking all over for you."

"Why?" she asked, surprised, while following her instinct to back away from him even though they were still rather far apart.

"You're my date."

"No, you were my ride. Derek's my date," Casey firmly told him. "Derek bought my basket."

"Only after you bought his jacket," Max argued as if that changed things.

Rolling her eyes, Casey replied, "Max, we're over. We've been over for a long time." Looking slightly repentant, she added, "I sorry I agreed to come with you. I just did that to upset Derek. I never should have pulled you into our fight."

Stalking closer, eyes narrowed, he said, "You were hoping Venturi would buy your basket the whole time."

Shrugging sheepishly, she countered, "I never actually thought he would."

That didn't seem to appease Max any. In fact, it only seemed to make him angrier. Moving faster than she had ever seen him do before, Max reached forward and grabbed Casey in a bruising grip, yanking her against him.

Struggling to no avail, Casey squeaked, "Max, let me go!"

"No," he growled. "You owe me. You embarrassed me in front of the whole school. I had you and then you went and bought that damn jacket."

"Max," Casey pleaded, still struggling against him. "Derek's flock of fan girls would have pooled their money to buy his jacket. You would have lost anyway."

"Yes, but they would have given him the jacket back. Venturi would have flashed his smirk at them, asked politely, and they would have rushed to give it back. Everyone knows you'll keep it. You'll wear the damn thing everyday just to mess with Venturi's head." Tightening his grip on her in the mist of his anger, Max added, "And Venturi won't give a damn because that jacket will clearly mark you as _his _girl."

"Let go!"

"No!"

Despite Casey's struggling, Max yanked her closer to him and pressed his mouth against hers in a bruising and greedy kiss.

Feeling tears start to leak out of her eyes as she struggled against Max's iron grip in vain, Casey was about to give up when she remembered something Derek had taught her and Marti just in case. Relaxing, but not responding, to take Max off guard, Casey wiggled her right foot around until it was in the perfect place. Then, before Max knew what was going on, Casey slammed her pointed heel right into Max's sensitive instep.

Surprise and pain caused Max to loosen his grip. This gave Casey just enough room to bring her knee up at a bruising speed right into Max's most sensitive area. This, of course, got Max to let go of Casey completely as he bent almost double on himself. Casey, however, wasn't done yet. There were still two steps to go.

Leaning closer, Casey slammed her elbow down on Max's neck right next to where his skull and neck connected. Then, she finished him up with a strong right cross directly to his eye.

Max collapsed to the ground in a puddle of pain.

Looking down at the pathetic creature, Casey snapped, "I told you to let me go." And with that, she flipped on her heel and went storming down the hall.

Turning the corner, Casey literally ran into someone else. She would have fallen over except for the other person's quick reflexes. Casey was about ready to let loose on them, too. She didn't want to talk to anyone but Derek and no one was getting in her way.

A familiar laugh, however, stopped Casey in her tracks.

"Space Case, watch where you're going," Derek teased with a warm grin.

"Derek," she shouted, throwing her arms around his neck.

Wrapping his arms around her, Derek replied, "I'm happy to see you too, Case." Feeling her shake against him, Derek pulled back so that he could see her face. "Casey, are you crying?"

Casey shook her head and buried her face in his neck. Derek knew she was lying and not just because he could feel her tears soaking his shirt.

Rubbing her back tenderly, he asked, "Casey, what's wrong?"

Casey didn't say anything but just pointed back behind her. Keeping his arms wrapped around her, Derek shuffled them so that he could see around the corner. Seeing Max in a groaning heap, Derek pulled back once again and asked with a delighted grin, "Case, did you do that?"

"I told him to let me go," she said in explanation.

Pulling her closer, Derek laughed proudly. "He won't try to mess with Casey McDonald again."

Tipping her head back to look him in the eyes, Casey asked, "Why aren't you with everyone else?"

With an unnaturally shy smile, Derek replied, "I was looking for my date?"

"You don't sound too sure of that, Venturi," Casey teased with a smile.

Smirking back at her, he countered, "Well, I was hoping I wasn't just looking for my date."

"Who else were you hoping to find?"

"My girlfriend."

"Is that an offer?"

"Only if you say yes," he countered.

Instead of answering, Casey drew herself up and pressed her lips to his. This time, both side happily participated.

Needing to breath, they pulled back but kept each other close. Giving her that half-smirk he was so famous for, Derek asked, "Was that a yes?"

"What do you think?" Casey retorted with a smirk of her own.

Surprising both of them, Derek shifted his grip on her and then lifted Casey up so he could twirl her around. Shouting at the top of his lungs, Derek announced to the world at large, "She said yes! Casey McDonald is my girl!"

Laughing, Casey reprimanded, "Der-ek! Everyone will hear you."

Setting her back down, Derek replied, "I don't care. I've hid my feelings for you for way too long to care. Let people say what they want. You're mine!"

"Then you're mine."

"About time you figured that out," Derek smirked before pulling Casey into another kiss.

* * *

Looking at the stars twinkling down on them as they walked home, Casey sighed happily and swung her and Derek's conjoined hands. Watching her caused Derek to smile himself.

"Did you enjoy yourself tonight, Case?"

Smiling brilliantly, she replied, "Yes. How about you, Derek?"

Tugging her closer, Derek gave her a quick kiss. "Yeah."

"We're home," Casey pointed out unnecessarily. "They're going to wonder where the car is. What do we say?"

"We could always tell them that I sold the car to get enough money to buy the basket of this babe…"

Casey smacking the back of his head seemed to say everything she thought about that plan.

"Fine, we won't say anything and see if they notice. How's that?"

"They are kind of flaky," Casey agreed. "I just don't want them to forbid our dating."

Pulling her into a hug, Derek smirked. "Case, what Derek wants, Derek gets. I want to date you. You want to date me. We'll be fine."

"I wish I were as cocky as you."

"It wouldn't work," he confidently replied. "Two egos as big as mine in a relationship would never work."

"Idiot," she replied. Of course any sting was quickly taken away by the kiss she gave him.

* * *

George and Nora looked up in surprise when they saw their children walk in the door together. Turning off the TV, Nora asked, "How was the auction?"

"Good," was the monosyllabic reply they received from both teens.

Confused, George said, "I didn't hear the Prince when you drove up."

"Yeah, about that," Derek started while nervously running his free hand through his hair.

Casey, used to sharing things with her mother and so excited she could burst, exclaimed, "Derek sold the car so he'd have enough money to buy my basket."

"Casey!" Derek yelled in disbelief.

Ignoring him, she quickly went on. "Max was trying to buy my basket but I didn't want him too. Derek didn't have enough cash on him so he _sold_ the Prince!"

George just stared at his son in complete surprise. Nora, on the other hand, looked between the two with a half-grin on her face.

"I guess that explains why you're wearing Derek's jacket and he's wearing your lipstick," Nora finally replied.

Casey flipped around and quickly helped Derek rub the lipstick off his lips. Seeing this, George turning his big eyes to his wife who just shrugged and smiled.

Once the teens were looking back at them, George said, "No excessive PDA in front of us or your siblings."

"If you two have an argument, no taking it out on the rest of us," Nora added.

"And finally, you're not allowed in each other's room unless the doors are open. We'll remove the doors if we have to."

Nora quickly agreed.

Exchanging a look, Derek then spoke for the two of them. "You don't care that we're dating?"

"Derek," Nora said with a grin. "We may be flaky but we're not stupid."

"And if we were," George added, "Lizzie and Edwin's research or Marti's comments would have been enough to clue us in."

"I think we all knew you two liked each other before you did."

"Oh," Derek said, clearly uncomfortable with how transparent he was.

Casey, however, seemed to take it better. Nodding in agreement, she smiled at their parents before turning to Derek and giving him a quick kiss.

"Derek, put the basket in the kitchen. I'll wash the dishes tomorrow." Then, before anyone could reply, she hurried up the stairs and called, "Good-night."

Sighing, Derek looked down at the basket in his hand and then headed towards the kitchen to follow Casey's instructions. George and Nora, however, exchanged a grin and tried to bite down on their laughter as they heard Derek mutter to himself, "I am _so_ whipped."


	6. Ontario

**Author's Note: This is dedicated to all of you who wanted Derek to have a car. I hope this chapter makes up for selling The Prince.**

* * *

_Ontario_

"Casey, hurry it up," Derek shouted as he banged on her door. "We're going to be late."

Derek smiled as he heard Casey sighed dramatically. "Three months and already the romance is gone."

"You know it, babe."

Laughing, Casey instructed, "Go get the keys from George. I'll be down soon."

Grumbling good naturedly, Derek headed down the stairs to let Casey make her grand entrance. "Hey, Dad, Nora," he called. "I need the keys. I want to be able to leave once Casey walks down the stairs."

"About that," George said absently from his spot on the couch where he was watching television. "I've been thinking about it and I'm not so sure I want to let you drive my car. You might decide to sell it."

"Dad…" Derek started to grumble.

Looking up, surprised, George responded, "Derek, last time you went to a school function you sold your car. How do I know this isn't some new fetish you've got?"

Interrupting Derek before he could begin, Nora added, "We've talked about it Derek and we aren't going to let you drive either of our cars."

"But, you promised," Derek argued, getting angrier the longer this _joke_ lasted. "It's too late for Casey and me to grab a ride now. We'll have to walk there!"

"It's a nice night out," George responded with an unconcerned grin.

Losing his temper and reminding Nora of her husband, Derek yelled, "Casey!"

Panicked, Casey came stumbling down the stairs. "What's wrong?"

Pointing towards their parents, he growled, "They won't let us borrow the car. We need to walk!"

Instead of responding, Casey just turned her head and shot the parents a look as she waited for an explanation. Nora, actually affected, unlike George, popped up off the couch waving a card size envelope.

Shoving it at Derek, she said, "Read this before you have a meltdown. It's from Dennis."

Forehead scrunched up in confusion, Derek plopped down in his chair and opened the envelope. Casey, curious, hurried over and perched herself on the arm of the recliner so that she could see over Derek's shoulder.

* * *

Dear Derek,

You're probably surprised to be getting a letter from me, especially since we haven't spoken since you got me to come back and see Casey after that dinner. Let me just start off and say that as a father this is very hard for me. I can't say I was happy to hear about my daughter dating a boy she lives with. In fact, I was hoping to never to have to deal with this. Coward I may be, but I was certain that George could take care of any of Casey and Lizzie's boyfriends and I wouldn't have to worry about it. With you being his son, however, well that puts another spin on things.

I know I'm not around often, especially with living in New York, but I do email my girls frequently. From the start I knew you were important to Casey. You've filled her emails with both good and bad things. Anytime you did something '_sweet'_ or at least something Casey considered sweet I would get at least a four page email with a moment by moment byplay. After the Box Social Auction I received a small novel.

The thing is, I haven't just been hearing about you from Casey. Lizzie has also spent some of her email times describing the interactions between you and Casey. It was after she and Edwin shipped me a copy of their research binder on you two that I decided to ask Nora about what she thought.

Not to give you a big head or anything, but Nora sang your praises. She made sure to point out that since you and Casey have started dating your grades have gone up, you help out more around the house, and Casey's become a little less neurotic. Nora and I were always worried that she'd give herself an ulcer, but it seems you are taking good care of our girl. Nora was also quick to point out that this is the longest relationship both of you have ever been in and you're still going strong.

Finally, about three weeks ago I called to talk to my girls and Marti answered the phone. That conversation was very informative. It seems that little Marti sees more of what's going on than anyone gives her credit for. She informed me that her Smerek and his Casey are happier than they have been since her Daddy married Nora. After some rapid fire questioning on my part, I decided that Marti was right. That fact alone scared me more than anything else ever has.

I've recently come to the realization that my Casey is growing up. I'm also afraid that she has finally found _The One_ she's been searching for in you. I am sure that one day I will be leading her down the aisle and giving her away to you. Do me a favor though, wait until you're at least sophomores in college before you ask her. I'm still not quite ready to give my daughter away, yet.

I'm not writing this letter, however, to tell you that I approve of your relationship with my oldest daughter. I do, but that is not the point. What I wrote this letter for was to tell you this. For almost a solid week after the Auction I heard about you selling your car for Casey from three separate sources. All three agreed that it was the most romantic thing they ever heard of.

To show you I approve and to help you better take care of my little girl, I decided to give you a present. It would cost too much to ship, however, so I wired Nora the money and she, Lizzie, and Marti bought it for me. If you don't like it, blame them.

Derek, I do like you, but if you ever hurt my daughter, stepbrother or not, I will kill you. Keep that in mind.

-Dennis McDonald

* * *

Staring at the paper in his hands, Derek found that he couldn't think with the jumble of thoughts that were racing through his head. He couldn't decide if he was more embarrassed about the fact that his girlfriend's father was apparently planning their wedding already, or curious about what Dennis' gift was. Casey, however, seemed to have no problem.

"Mom," she exclaimed. "Dad…wedding…Derek…"

Seeing that part was taken care of, Derek smirked. "So, what's this gift you, Lizzie, and Smarti picked out?"

Smiling delightedly, Nora turned and called for Lizzie and Marti. When they arrived, she said, "It's time to show Derek his present."

Getting excited as only Marti could, she threw herself at her big brother and declared, "Come on, Smerek! You'll love it! Now you won't have to go on double dates with Emily and Sheldon or Sam and Sally."

As Marti dragged him out the front door, Derek looked back over his shoulder at Casey to see her gaping in surprise much like he was. Running to catch up with them, she whispered, "Marti couldn't mean…"

Derek never had a chance to reply as at that moment they found out exactly what Derek's gift was.

Staring in disbelief, Derek muttered, "You've got to be kidding…"

"Do you like it, Smerek?" Marti happily asked as she showed the car off like Vanna White showing off the new puzzle. "I picked the color. It's purple!"

Casey slipped up next to Derek and wrapped an arm around his waist. Kissing his jaw, she whispered, "Do you think you can stand to drive a purplish car?"

Seeing Derek just open and shut his mouth repeatedly, unable to say a word, Nora and Lizzie exchanged a grin.

Eyes twinkling, Lizzie teased, "Don't worry. It's a hybrid so it's better for the environment."

Also excited to extol the vehicles many good qualities, Nora added, "It has a high rating for safe handling during winter weather conditions. And it has seat warmers!"

"And lots of cup holders!" Marti excitedly added, not to be out done. "Don't you think it's great, Smerek?"

"Wow," was all Derek was able to stutter out.

Giggling, Casey said, "I believe he means thank you and yes, Marti, this is the greatest car ever!"

Running back to her brother, Marti threw her arms around his waist and hugged him tight.

"Now you and Casey can go on dates all by yourself," Marti informed him.

"Whoa," George interrupted with a grin. "Maybe this was a bad idea."

"Georgie," Nora reprimanded. Turning to Edwin, she asked, "Did you get Derek and Casey's reactions?"

"Oh yeah," Edwin said from behind the camera. "But, Derek's was funnier."

Derek turned and glared at his little brother but couldn't seem to do more than that with his two favorite girls wrapped around him.

Knowing he was safe from retribution, Derek would forget all about him after his date with Casey, Edwin laughed and dodged out of Derek's reaching grasp.

Taking her camera from George, knowing he would just cut off their heads, Nora smiled brightly. "Derek, Casey, stand in front of the car. I want to get pictures of you two. You look so cute in your costumes!"

"Nora," Derek complained as Casey pulled him in position for the picture, "I don't do cute."

"Of course not," Nora replied in a tone that made it obvious that she wasn't paying the least bit of attention to him.

Rolling his eyes and giving up, Derek draped his arm around Casey's shoulders and pulled her closer for the picture. After several flashes, Marti ran in and joined the picture. Smiling, Derek scooped her up and balanced her on his right hip putting Marti between him and Casey. Seeing the scene they made, Nora's smile widened and she whispered to George, "We have got to find a baby-sized leather jacket!"

"What?" George asked, clearly confused.

Nodding towards Derek, Casey, and Marti, Nora replied, "Isn't that adorable! Think of them each in their leather jackets and instead of Marti, our grandbaby! It would make the most perfect Christmas card picture."

Eyes widening, George looked away and caught Lizzie's eyes. He almost laughed out loud, however, when Lizzie rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders as if to say, "What can we do? She's nuts."

Nora, ignoring them, instructed, "Edwin, hand your camera to George. Lizzie, Edwin, join the picture. One on each side."

"Nora, I can't see anymore because of all the floating dots," Derek complained.

"Just a few more," Nora overrode. "Lizzie next to Derek. That's right. Put your arm around her shoulders, Derek. Good. Casey, same thing with Edwin. Oh! That's perfect," she exclaimed before blinding all of her subjects with another several rounds of camera flashes.

"Mom," Casey finally intervened. "We need to go if we're going to show off Derek's new ride."

Leaning over Marti, Derek gave Casey a quick peck. "You do know me, babe."

"You're not that hard to understand, sugar," she replied as she pinched his rear in retaliation for calling her babe.

Laughing, Derek gently sat Marti down on the ground. "We gotta go, Smarti. Don't wait up."

"Okay, Smerek," Marti happily agreed before skipping over to George and Nora.

Turning to Casey, Derek grinned, "Your carriage awaits, Princess."

Smiling in return, Casey teased, "Thank you, my handsome Prince."

* * *

"No way!" Emily exclaimed as she saw Derek and Casey pull up.

Her shout caught Sam's attention. Seeing Derek get out of a new car, he pulled Sally away from the entrance to the dance and drug her with him to see what was going on.

"D, I thought you said you saved enough money to buy another leather jacket, not a car," Sam said as he looked the new vehicle over.

"I didn't buy this," Derek replied with a grin. "It was a gift from Dennis McDonald."

"Whoa! Sally, do you think your dad likes me that much?" Sam absently asked as he ran a hand over the leather seats.

Before Sally could answer one way or another, Sheldon exclaimed, "Look at all these cup holders!"

As Derek teased Sheldon about being like Marti, Sally turned to Casey and said, "So, who are you and Derek going as?"

"Danny and Sandy from _Grease_," Casey excitedly informed her.

Emily giggled. "Casey just wanted to show off Derek's new leather jacket."

"I wanted everyone to know that I didn't just give him his jacket back," Casey explained with a toss of her head. "And I wanted an excuse to wear my Babe Raider outfit again. Derek told me he likes how I look in it."

"Of course I do," Derek said, the car powwow obviously over. Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he added, "I just don't like how everything other guys _likes_ how you look in it. Remember to keep that jacket on."

"You are so cute when you're jealous."

As they kissed, their friends rolled their eyes and wondered if the honeymoon period would _ever_ end.

Emily, tired of seeing them kiss, turned to Sam and Sally and asked, "Who are you two?"

Upon hearing Sam's evasive, "Well…" Derek took a good look at his best friend. "Dude, what _are_ you wearing?"

Blushing, Sam mumbled something that no one understood. Sally, grinning mischievously, said, "He's Jareth the Goblin King and I'm Sarah from _Labyrinth_. I saw that spangled jacket and just knew what our costumes should be."

"Sam," Derek protested, "You're wearing tights instead of pants."

"No," Sam retorted, blushing scarlet. "These are just really tight pants. Just like what the Goblin King wore."

Taking pity on their friend, Casey turned to Emily and asked, "And who are you two?"

Lighting up, Emily twirled around showing off her silvery dress and detachable wings. "Isn't this adorable? I just knew we had to have a costume that went along with this dress."

"So, who are you?" Sally asked.

"Danielle and Prince Henry," Sheldon replied.

"From _Ever After_," Casey finished with a squeal. "Oh, Em, you look perfect. The wings are just amazing."

"Sheldon built them," Emily shared with a grin.

"Awe, you're prince charming and her fairy godmother," Casey gushed.

"Yeah, he's just great," Derek sarcastically added as he started hauling his girlfriend towards the building.

"Derek Venturi, you don't have a romantic bone in your body!"

"Case, I've had this jacket for two weeks but I haven't worn it yet so because you wanted me to 'début' it tonight. I think that's incredibly romantic."

Following slowly behind the arguing couple, Sam sighed, "Kissing then arguing, arguing then kissing. And I thought they'd be less tiring after they got together."

"It's not as bad as it once was," Emily said in defense of their friends.

"Yeah," Sally agreed. "They really cemented their relationship after standing up to Max and his incest rumors."

Laughing, Sam replied, "I never saw anything so funny as Max's face when Derek offered to let Casey beat him up again."

"I don't think I've ever seen anyone so afraid in my entire life," Sheldon added with a grin. "I just wish we had that on tape."

"And now he has no one because even Amy won't take him back," Emily gloated. "Sweet justice."

Rolling his eyes, Sam interrupted, "Don't look now, but our lovebirds have stopped arguing."

"Should we break them up?" Sheldon asked.

"If we don't," Emily sighed, "some else will. I'll take Casey."

"I guess I've got Derek," Sam said.

As the two were pulled apart and the group marched them forward, Sheldon teased, "Don't worry, D, you'll get your Casey back once we're inside. After getting all dressed up, you wouldn't want to miss the party, now would you?"

Trying to twist out of Sam's grasp, Derek replied, "I know where you live, Schlepper. Keep that in mind."

Sheldon just laughed. Like Edwin earlier, he wasn't worried. Once he spent the night with his Casey, tough guy Derek Venturi would completely forget about beating anyone to a pulp.

"Ah," Sheldon thought. "The Power of Love."


End file.
